Thread guide for winding machines



May 14, 193 5.

A. AMEL- THREAD GUIDE FOR WINDING MACHINES Filed Sept. 20, 1933 J72 en/a;- M M, 6 A M gfarvz y Patented May 14, 1935 a H UNITED STATES;

OFFICE" THREAD GUIDE FOR MACHINES Abraham Amel, Pawtuclret, R. I. Application September 20, 1933, Serial No. 690,189

2 Claims.

constant wear and which frequently cause breakage of the thread when an enlarged portion of the thread is drawn into one of these narrow cuts. Another object of the invention is the provision of a thread guide having a contact member mounted for rotation as the thread is drawn thereover and provided with a transversely curved groove for receiving and guiding the thread thereby preventing excessive wear at any one portion of the contact surface.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a simple and efiicient means for supporting the rotatable contact member or guide pulley in such a manner as to permit the removal and replacement of the guide pulley readily when desired as well as means for preventing excessive wear between the pulley and supporting member.

Other objects and advantages of the invention relate to various improved details of construction and novel arrangements of the parts as will be more fully set forth in the detailed description to follow.

Referring to the drawing:-

Fig. 1 is a top plan View of a portion of a winding machine mechanism of a conventional type, illustrating the relative position of the thread guide members with relation to the skeins or spools and the bobbins or cops to be wound,

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one of the thread guide members removed from the guide rail,

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view through the thread guide member, taken substantially along the horizontal plane indicated by the line 33 of Fig. 2, and,

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the guide pulley supporting shaft as seen when removed from the guide block.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated herewith, l designates a reel shaft which may be provided with a plurality of reels 2, carrying skeins 3 of thread to be wound upon bobbins, cops, or the like after a manner well known in the art. 55 Supporting plates 5 are secured to suitable portions of the main frame (not shown) of the machine and provide bearings for rotatably support ing spindles 6, each ofwhich may be provided with a drive pulley' l, whereby each spindle may be rotated from a suitable source of power 5 through a drive belt 8. A bobbin I0 is adapted to be mounted on each spindle 6 and rotated thereby through ratchet teeth l2 or by any other suitable means. I

A longitudinally reciprocating guide rail I6 is 16" located intermediate the reels 2 and bobbins l0, which may be reciprocated by an arm l5 from a portion of the drive mechanism after a manner well known in the art. The guide rail l4 may rest upon and be guided in its reciprocating movement by a stationary supporting beam l6, and may be provided'upon its upper face with a' groove i7 extending longitudinally of the guide rail and for a purpose which will be more-fully set forth hereinafter.

The improved thread guides 20 are each adapted to be seated upon the guide rail and suitably positioned thereon at a point between one of the skeins 3 and itscorresponding bobbin 10.

Each thread guide 20 comprises a body portion 25' 2| which may be formed of wood, fibre, hard rubber, or other suitable material, and which has a base flange 22 adapted to fit within the groove l'l formed upon the upper face of the guide rail l4. Opposed recesses 23 may be formed in the top surface of the body portion 2| of the thread guide to receive portions of holding clips 24 carried by or secured in the guide rail for holding each thread guide member firmly in position upon the guide rail. A transverse channel 25 is formed in the body portion of the thread guide to receive a contact pulley or guide pulley 26, which is rotatably mounted on a shaft 21 and provided with a surface groove 28 for receiving and guiding the thread. The guide pulley 26 is 40 preferably provided with abushing 30 formed from wood, fibre, hard rubber, or other suitable material to reduce the wear upon the bearing shaft 21.

The shaft 21 may be formed to extend partially or entirely through the body portion 2| of the thread guide, dependent upon the extent of the aligned openings 3| formed in the opposed end portions of the thread guide member, and may be held in position therein by having the end portion 32 thereof bent to provide a resilient clip 33 shaped to spring into gripping engagement with one of the inclined faces 34 of the body portion 2! of the thread guide, after themanner shown in Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawing.

As the bobbins III are rotated through the drive belts 8, a thread 35 is drawn from each skein 3 and wound upon each bobbin. Each thread passes over one of the rotatable guide pulleys 26 and is laid spirally upon the bobbin during the rotation thereof through reciprocation of the guide rail !4, the extent and speed of travel of the guide rail being proportioned to the speed of rotation and effective length of the bobbin employed.

While the mode of operation of the thread guides has been illustrated in connection with bobbins mounted in such a manner as to have their respective axes located in parallel relation with the direction of movement of the reciprocating guide rail, the thread guides are. also adapted for use equally well with other forms of thread winders, such, for example,as those in which the axes of the bobbins or thread holders are located at right angles to the guide rail and wherein the guide rail is given a reciprocating movement in a-plane located above and in a direction parallel with the axes of the bobbins.

1 The provision of the rotatable contact or guide pulley 26 having a transversely curved groove formed in itsv exterior face to receive andguide a thread 35 from the skein to the bobbin provides a rolling contact surface for the thread at all The contact or guide pulley 26 may be provided with a non-metallic bushing 30 formed of any suitable material, as stated, or, if desired, the entire pulley 26 may be formed from hard rubber, porcelain, bakelite or other suitable material such as -may be appropriateto provide arolling contact for a thread and which is relatively non- Wearing upon the supporting shaft. The lateral recess 25 formed for the reception of the rotatable pulley 26 in the body portion may be of less depth than that shown and may ,be in the form of a more or less shallow depression located in the top of the body portion of the guide member. .The upstanding end-portions of the body member, of the form shown, serve to maintain the pulley 26 against axial movement relative to the supporting shaft and thus insure the thread being accurately laid upon the bobbin. Instead of forming the body member of a solid block other forms may be employed so long as means are provided for removably supporting the pulley shaft and for retaining the pulley in position axially of the shaft.

The provision of a wood, fibre or other similar form of bushing 36 within the thread guide pulley 26 serves to lessen the wear upon the shaft 21 incident to the friction between metal surfaces, thus lessening deterioration of the parts, and whenever the pulley 26 or shaft 2'! become worn to such an extent as to make replacement desirable, either of these parts may be readily removed and replaced'by the usual machine operator without requiring the services of a mechanic, by rea- 7 son of the simplicity of the parts and the readiness with which the shaft 21 may be removed from or replaced within the thread guide block.

What I claim is:

1. A thread guiding means for winding mae chinescomprising a body having upstanding portions spaced from each other and provided with aligned recesses for the reception of a shaft member, a circumferentially :grooved guide pulley located between said upstanding portions, a shaft member located within the aligned recesses and rotatably supporting said guide pulley, and resilient means carried by said shaft for frictionally engaging a portion of saidbody tohold the shaft against accidental separation from the body.

2. A' thread guide block having laterally inclined faces and provided with a transverse channel'extendingdownwardly from the top of said guideblock and having aligned shaft bearings formed'therein and located upont opposite sides of the transverse channel, a shaft mounted in the shaftbearings and having an end portion extending outwardly radially-of said shaft and adapted for clamping engagement with a portion of the thread block, and a guide pulley rotatably supported. by said shaft'within the transverse channel.

ABRAHAM AMEL. 

